Next chapter of A Knight's Prophecy!
Warning: mention of death
Summary: remember what happened in the previous chapter? Yeah it's going to happen again.
Déjà vu
Déjà vu: a feeling of having already experienced the present situation.
"Nozomi, are you alright?"
Nozomi blinked, and took a deep breath before putting on a smile.
"I'm fine. Come on, let's go get Elicchi's chocolates and everything else. We can't afford to set off late tomorrow."
Maki nodded, a brown paper bag of colourful sweets nestled in her arm.
"Do you think Nico will like these?"
Nozomi had to hold back a cry as the memory of an utterly devastated Maki came back to her mind. She forced her smile to stay as she spoke.
"She will absolutely adore them. Nicocchi has always had a sweet tooth. And she likes cute things."
"T-that's great!"
"She likes you a great deal more than Elicchi and I after all."
"N-Nozomi! Let's hurry up! Papa did say he wanted us to go back before the sky turned dark!"
"No worries, your face will light up the darkness, with that incredibly beautiful red hue." Nozomi poked Maki on the cheek, before skipping off ahead, making sure her tears were wiped away before Maki pushed her into the next store.
Nozomi and Maki had entered the Nishikino residence with a lighter load than expected. Nozomi had insisted on buying less items, all the while looking at the fading sunlight. Maki had shrugged it off, thinking Nozomi was just lonely without Eli.
"Mama, we're back." Maki announced, and her mother appeared, stretching out her hand to relieve the girls of their load.
"No, Mama, I'm going to put these down. You already cooked, so just rest." Maki insisted, and Kikuko scowled.
"You're leaving soon, and you won't even allow your poor mother to help you out." Kikuko sighed. "My dear Maki is really growing up."
"Mama!"
"I can't believe you're going to be an adventurer." Nishikino Kyou repeated his default greeting ever since Maki's return with Nozomi.
"I can't believe-" Maki turned to Nozomi, who was still at the entrance, a vacant expression etched on her face. "Nozomi, are you alright?" Maki approached her friend, who blinked rapidly, and put on her usual smile.
"I'm fine, just a bit tired."
Maki frowned, but Kikuko spoke first.
"Nozomi-chan, are you tired?"
"Perhaps. Walking around in the city is so fun, and I seem to have used up much of my energy in that excitement."
"Oh dear, then we should have dinner soon so that you can rest earlier." Kikuko went to the kitchen, and her husband eyed the two girls from his seat.
"I would recognise that look, I've seen it before. You're worrying about something, are you not?" Kyou sighed, and Nozomi shook her head. "No use denying it, I've seen many soldiers react the same way. I've seen many spouses, partners, family members with this behaviour. Homesickness. Worry. I shall not press you more, but if you have urgent matters to attend to, if you have somewhere you need to be, you don't have to stay."
"Papa!" Maki hissed. "Are you trying to chase Nozomi away?"
Kyou ignored his daughter for once, eyes locking onto Nozomi's. "It isn't an obligation to stay, you know." He looked towards the kitchen. "Maki's mother is fond of cooking more, so she enjoys company. The more guests over, the more she can cook, and the more praises she receives. Don't feel pressured." He nodded with a stiff smile, possibly the best her could muster, and Nishikino Kikuko stepped out.
"Dinner is ready!"
Maki was about to confront her father, but the familiar and very distracting aroma turned her attention towards the table, where a pot, some meat and potatoes were waiting.
"Tomato soup!" She exclaimed, and rushed to the table, forgetting her other concerns. Priorities, after all.
Nozomi sat herself down at the table too, but halfway through her small serving, she looked up at her hosts.
"I have to go."
"All of a sudden?" Kikuko looked towards her husband, who continued his meal unperturbed.
"It… it's urgent." Nozomi bit her lip.
"If you have to return, then you should. It's quite a shame, but we hope to see you soon." Kikuko smiled, and Maki slammed both hands against the table.
Furious amethyst eyes locked onto emerald ones.
"Correction, we have to go."
"What was that about?!" Maki growled, clutching onto the reins of her borrowed horse. Nozomi had packed hastily, and accepted Kyou's offer of two horses to shorten their trip back.
"…just a premonition." Nozomi stared ahead, the merriment in her eyes no longer present.
"Nozomi!"
"Elicchi and Nicocchi can fight for a long time before there's a victor. We might make it." Nozomi urged her horse faster, and the black stallion surged past its grey counterpart.
"What? What do you mean fight? And how do you know?" Maki caught up to Nozomi, but this time, the princess shook her head.
"I'll tell you later."
The castle came into view, still as dreary as ever, but nothing had changed. Nozomi still could not find herself able to breathe properly. As she charged down the road, she did not notice Maki pulling to a halt.
She continued in, abandoning her horse the moment they entered the tower, and ran towards the stairs, throwing aside anything that hindered her movement. She climbed higher, and flung the doors open to the main room before falling down.
In front of her, as she had expected, wings had sprouted out from Nico's back, and the charred walls proved that they had indeed started a scuffle. And her job was far from done. She had experienced this so many times, she knew that even if she reached in time, the same destruction could occur without the proper intervention.
Her eyes darted around for Eli. 'Elicchi first, then Nicocchi.' She reminded herself, and desperately prayed for blond to appear.
Nico had let out a roar, and her dragon form was starting to become more obvious. Black scales lined her arms and jawline, while her nails sharpened and turned into claws. She could not move as swiftly as she usually did during the transformation, and Ayase Eli took this opportunity to jump out form her hiding place, and deliver a swift punch to Nico. The dragon girl dodged, and flicked her tail at Eli, whipping her face and leaving a red line.
"Elicchi, stop!" Nozomi cried out, but Nico had extended her wings suddenly, knocking Nozomi back.
Even in her enraged state, Eli seemed to notice the harm done to Nico, and pivoted on her left foot, her right foot swinging, and landing a solid strike to Nico's ribcage. The dragon girl stumbled, and let out a howl, before swinging back and letting out a stream of fire. A few sparks races across her spine, and she growled, eyes flashing a brighter red.
"Elicchi!" Nozomi watched in horror as the flames licked the blonde. She got up, and tackled the blonde down.
"Elicchi, I'm fine! Please, snap out of it! Elicchi!" Nozomi hugged Eli tightly, and winced as the blonde struggled fiercely against her hold.
"What the hell is going on?!"
The dragon girl turned, and her slitted eyes fixed on the newcomer. She was oddly familiar, but she could be as dangerous as the blonde. Already, her hand was on the hilt of her sword. She roared again, and the scales shimmered and spread, the small fireballs now smothered by them, letting out a dusty grew smoke around her body. She hardly transformed into this form; she hated it. It was powerful, impervious to flames, ice, metal, mostly anything, but the price to pay for that invincibility was equally high. She couldn't move until the transformation was complete, or she would collapse from the sheer pain and exhaustion. The scales dug into her skin, drawing blood, and her claws jerked back into her cuticles, staining the grey with red. This transformation was far from pleasant, and the dragon girl let out a guttural cry.
"Ni-nico?" Maki approached the girl.
"Maki!" Nozomi yelled, her arms still around Eli, who was struggling much less now. "Stop Nicocchi!"
"How do I stop her?!" Maki yelled back, but looked at the girl in front of her. She might look like half a monster, but she was suffering. Even though her nostrils flared and her red eyes threatened to rip her apart, Maki knew that the girl in front of her was in pain. It reminded her of herself when she was younger. And so she acted on instinct, and slapped the girl. The smoke emitted by the dragon girl was a clear sign that beneath those scales, the tiny spheres of red hot anger were still dancing all over Nico. Maki's hand stung, but she ignored the pain.
"Nico-chan! You can hear me, right?! Well, I know you can. Stop throwing this tantrum already!"
Not a wise move, apparently, as the dragon girl tried to snap at Maki, but the transformation had yet to reach her jaw, and that action had caused more scales to pierce deeper into her own flesh. The blood trickling down Nico's face alarmed Maki, who cursed herself for her rash act. But she didn't want to see Nico in this state. She wanted to stop her. She wanted the old Nico back. And nothing, nothing would stop her from helping Nico.
Nico snarled, and spewed a weak snort of embers which extinguished themselves before Maki's face.
The dragon's red eyes closed for a moment, and in that short moment, Maki had pulled Nico's head close to her chest.
"I'm sorry. I just don't want to see you hurting yourself anymore. You're going to hurt yourself more than anyone if you continue. Please. Nico-chan, please."
Nico couldn't move at all, even though she knew that there was anger flaring up inside of her, and felt the scales retracting. It was a nostalgic touch. A hold promising safety, warmth, and comfort.
By the time Maki had stopped crying, Nico was leaning against her, bleeding and unconscious.
While the two were resting in different rooms, Nozomi and Maki took the time to clean up the mess.
Maki was still shocked, and she didn't notice that she had cleaned the same wall three times.
Nozomi had been the one to instruct her to immerse her hand in cool water, and Maki had done it in a daze, following Nozomi's further instructions to carry Nico and Eli to their beds.
"Maki-chan." It was a small whisper, but Maki heard it. "Thank you."
"What was that all about?" Maki demanded, and her irritation got the better of her. "Why won't you tell me anything? How did you know that they would be fighting? Why were they fighting? And…"
Nozomi put the broom down.
"And this sounds stupid, but I was so afraid you'd die too. I was so afraid, because when we were reaching the castle, I felt as though you would die at the very spot I was at. It's so stupid, isn't it?"
Nozomi pondered for a moment. The very same spot? Could it be…
"Maki-chan, have you ever heard of the term Déjà vu?"
"I believe so." Maki stopped cleaning and leaned against the wall. "What does that have to do with anything though?"
Nozomi closed the distance between the both of them, and Maki gulped.
"What does it mean to you?"
Red eyebrows furrowed, and the wet cloth creased in Maki's hand. "The feeling that something has happened before."
"Exactly. You're going to think that I'm crazy, but… like you said, you felt as though … something ominous had happened, right?" Nozomi observed Maki's eyebrows, which were sinking deeper.
"It did feel like that, as though it was a far-off dream. That something bad had happened to you there. I felt as though I had killed you, but you were racing in front of me, so.. that was stupid, please ignore that." Maki turned back to the wall, but Nozomi pulled her back.
"It isn't stupid, Maki. It isn't. People who experienced Déjà vu are lucky because they get to relive an incident only once."
Purple eyes stared at emerald ones in confusion.
"You weren't wrong. And perhaps your intuition is greater than you know." Nozomi held onto Maki's shoulders, and the knight blinked.
"This is going to sound crazy, but you were right. Something ominous happened there, Maki. You killed me there."
Maki laughed, shaking her head. "How can I have killed you if you are here, alive and well enough to joke about that? I know you have a great sense of humour, but this is a distasteful joke. Especially with what has just transpired." She shrugged herself free of Nozomi's clutches. "Stop joking around. If you don't want to tell me the truth, you didn't have to resort to lying."
"Nishikino Maki, I am not lying."
Hearing Nozomi's sombre tone, Maki whirled around again. There was not a single trace of happiness on Nozomi's face.
"Are you listening now? Good. Tell me, what exactly did you feel before we entered the castle, and where?"
Maki closed her eyes, trying to recall the exact moment -
"Near a slope downwards, I… I was on my horse, and my hands trembled. And… I just felt scared and alone in that instant."
Nozomi nodded. "As though you had lost everything and everyone?"
"...Yes."
"And I had abandoned you?"
"Yes, but I knew that you went on ahead because-"
"Focus on how you felt then, Maki."
"It felt… as though I had done something wrong, and I tried to stop it but I failed. And my hands couldn't stop shaking for a while." Maki admitted.
"Maki, do you believe in reincarnation?"
"You mean, that spiritual mumbo jumbo about being reborn in a new body?" Maki shrugged. "I don't really have a stance on it."
"Good. I hope you are open-minded. Please don't run away this time." Nozomi inched closer to the red haired girl.
"What you experienced as Déjà vu, was what I had gone through in the past. And I know exactly what had happened then."
Maki bit her tongue, knowing to keep her skepticism to herself for now.
"It is indeed unbelievable, but I can somewhat traverse time."
"You're a time traveller?" Maki squeaked, and the cloth landed on the floor with a wet 'squish'.
"I can only go backwards. And for the travel to take place, a sacrifice must be made." Nozomi's mouth turned up at the corners slightly. "But I return to a specific point with all my memories intact."
"Wait, wait." Maki leaned against the wall, her right hand covering her eyes, a headache forming as she decided to play along this time. "If this is indeed true, then… did you bring forward our departure to arrive back here in time to stop this fight?"
"Yes." came the simple reply.
"And … in the past that you had experienced, we arrived too late, and…"
"Yes."
"I need a moment here." Maki slumped down on the ground, curling her knees to her chin. It wasn't entirely unbelievable, given the fact that she now knew the existence of a girl who could turn into a dragon. What was next? Eli being an ogre in disguise? Was she herself going to grow fairy wings? She shook her head at how she managed to almost believe that (she was too big to have fairy wings after all.) , and glanced back up at Nozomi.
"What did you do to change things? To travel through time?" She dreaded the answer, but anticipated the grim reality.
"I have to die. And experience the slow agony of death, right up to the last breath, to the last drop of blood that courses in my body." Nozomi seemed unfazed, but Maki's face paled.
"How.. how many times?"
Nozomi tilted her head up, "I'm not sure. I lost count somewhere. You're taking this better than I had expected."
"Well, Santa, an old man who flies around on a sleigh driven by reindeer is real, a girl who can turn into a dragon is real, everything isn't that hard to believe when you think about it."
It was Nozomi's turn to bit her tongue. "Apart from that, Elicchi and Nicocchi both have problems that they need to solve. It's not my place to intervene."
"It's not my place to intervene either." Maki stated.
"I'm not saying we have to intervene, but it'll be nice to have someone to keep them in check. When I first met them, Elicchi and Nicocchi had some unpleasant tension building up between them. And while I can click with Elicchi, Nicocchi doesn't seem that receptive to my approaches."
"What exactly caused them to be like that? I don't see tension when they aren't alone." Maki's eyebrows raised. "Are they - were they l-"
"Maki-chan!" Nozomi gasped, a distraught expression scarring her face. "Never!"
"Oh, I'm sorry."
"Let's just say… they have a bit of bad blood between them." Nozomi joined Maki on the floor, despite the fact that there were unbroken chairs around.
"Shouldn't they try to solve it as soon as possible then?" Maki asked and Nozomi hesitated, her mouth slightly open as the words fought their way to her tongue.
"I… it's complicated." Nozomi sighed. "I don't know if I should tell you about it. Perhaps later." Nozomi stood up and dusted her travelling pants that she had yet to change out of.
"Nozomi!" Maki stood up, nearly toppling over. She still had so many questions. Her head was pounding, and with the recent fight, her confusion was multiplied. There was no friendly, energetic reply.
"We should check on them first." Nozomi walked towards the rooms without looking back.
'I guess things will come at the right time.' Maki followed Nozomi, but split off to the room Nico was temporarily resting in. Her fingers trailed along the stone walls, a habit she had acquired while trying to memorise the many paths.
The forgotten cloth flopped down with a final squelch.
Nico was lying down when Maki stepped in, but she doubted the girl was still asleep.
"Nico-chan." Maki whispered, and sat right beside her, the bed sinking in with her added weight.
Her hand reached out to touch Nico's shoulder, willing the shorter girl to at least acknowledge her presence instead of keeping her back towards her.
"I don't want to talk now, Maki." a silent, subdued voice, one that Maki was not used to. In all her interactions with Nico, the black haired girl had always used a slightly arrogant tone, and for it to disappear suddenly truly frightened and worried Maki.
But then again, if she herself were to lose control and turn into a… a panther or some other creature that could be dangerous, she would be reluctant to talk to anyone. Just imagining herself losing control and hurting Nico left an uncomfortable knot in her throat.
'No, I'm here to check on Nico-chan.' Maki reminded herself, and steeled her resolve.
"Then let's not."
Instead, Maki threw off her boots, and despite Nico's muffled protest, slipped herself under the covers, her body touching Nico's.
"What are you doing?" Nico hissed, but her voice broke at the last word. Maki felt her huddle up, curling herself into a ball.
"I'm…" Maki shrugged, and lay on her side as well, still disappointed that she could not see Nico's face. "My mother used to do this to me when I had nightmares." She then used her left hand to stroke Nico's hair, a rhythmic action, starting from the top of Nico's head, down to her shoulders before repeating the pattern.
"...But I'm the nightmare here."
Again, she sounded so scared, so ashamed, and Maki leaned a little more towards Nico, her right hand sliding under Nico's neck to meet her left hand, forming a protective cradle around Nico.
"Even your hand, it's proof of that." Nico muttered, stubbornly keeping her limbs as close to her own body as possible.
"You're not a nightmare, Nico-chan." Maki sniffed, and let her eyes search Nico's bare arms for any sign of injury. The previous marks inflicted from her transformation had mysteriously vanished. Still, the emotional marks must have stayed.
"Maki, you're too kind." Nico sighed, and felt exhaustion overtaking her body, her eyebrows furrowed as the sounds of Maki's inconsistent breaths and hushed sobs lulled her to sleep once again.
When the first rays of the sun entered the room, Maki found herself moving from the bed. The whole night and early morning, her eyelids had closed briefly, before the fear of Nico disappearing jerked her awake again.
She was tired, her body ached, and she was certain her eyes were puffy. She shuffled across the floor, turning back to look at Nico once more.
'She's sleeping,' Maki thought, and shook her head, trying to clear any doubts that the girl would not stay. She sluggishly dragged her body towards the nearest toilet to freshen up.
"Oh, Maki-chan. Good morning." Nozomi greeted with a slightly damp face, towel still in her hands. "You look as though you did not sleep a wink."
"I didn't." Maki groaned, and slapped her cheeks lightly. "Can I talk to you?"
"Over breakfast, maybe." Nozomi nodded.
"Is Eli still asleep?"
"Yes. Nico should be too. They tend to sleep in after fighting. It does drain one's energy." Nozomi chuckled, but stopped when Maki didn't laugh along. "I'm sorry."
"You shouldn't be." Maki tapped her finger against the stone wall.
"I'll see you at the breakfast table." Nozomi patted Maki on the shoulder, and walked off.
Although it was a castle, or once a castle, there were no servants to help Maki get water. She cranked a handle of the water pump, and watched as water splashed from a pipe into the steel basin.
She wondered if the cool water would help her puffy eyes.
This was not the adventure she had hoped for. She had come here to the castle initially to slay a dragon, but ended up befriending it and the two princesses who had escaped their countries. As Maki wiped her face, she wondered if Nozomi and Eli had eloped. Princesses still dealt with arranged marriages after all.
She wondered why they didn't run from Nico when they met her
She wondered why she herself did not run from Nico either.
She dried her face and walked out, her feet leaving a wet trail behind her.
She wasn't hungry, but she found herself at the kitchen, watching Nozomi whip up a simple breakfast of eggs and bread.
"Ah, Maki-chan."
'Over breakfast.' Maki reminded herself and nodded instead of opening her mouth.
"Breakfast will be ready soon, please pass me two plates."
"Two?" Maki asked and retrieved two clean plates.
"Yes." Nozomi slid the eggs over. "Elicchi and Nicocchi will only be up around noon." She put the pan down and brought the bread over to the table. "Shall we?"
Maki gulped, and carried both plates over. She watched as Nozomi started eating, her own plate of food untouched.
"Are you not hungry?"
"I don't think I am. I have too many questions."
"Then let me answer them." Nozomi put her fork down, and locked eyes with Maki.
"Alright then, thank you." Maki pushed her plate away. "You said you could …. Time travel? Return to the past? How exactly does it happen?"
Nozomi frowned, trying to find the words to explain it. If only she could share sensations instead of having to dissect the whole experience…
"I can feel a tingle, a vibe, which warns me that should anything foul occur after that feeling, I will be able to return to the point I felt the tingle. And as you know, I do have to be killed to return to that time."
"It's like you're being reincarnated."
"I guess so. But with my memories intact. And with the awareness that I had to take my own life to turn back time. Knowing what lies ahead of me allows me to deal with it, or at least evade it."
Maki reached for a glass of water.
"What if you fail to change the outcome?"
Nozomi's smile was lifeless and bitter. "I simply die again and try every single method I can think of to change it. There have been times I have had to memorize pitfalls and traps, places where robbers hid."
Maki paled, and she put her cup down, spilling some water as she trembled. "And you can feel everything. You know how it feels to die."
Nozomi nodded. "It hurt a lot at first, so much that I woke up crying, but after a while, I got used to it. It still hurts, but I know that I have a second chance to change things."
"When did you realise you had this ability?"
Nozomi shook her head. "Maki-chan, I suggest you use your time to ask more relevant questions. Unlike me, you cannot turn time back."
"Alright then." Maki turned the cup slowly, thinking hard of what to ask. "What happened when they fought the last time?"
"The last time? I didn't stick around to find out. I don't think I would be able to take the sight again. But before that, either had died."
"Who?" Maki froze, and the cup spun out of her grip, water sloshing onto the table before the cup joined it.
"Both had their turns." Nozomi sighed. "I have stayed to hear their stories on more than one occasion. Trust me when I say they do have a reason to fight each other. I can't say that either of them deserves to die, but it is hard to defend them either."
"That sounds complicated."
"It is. I have a feeling you have to know about them, but not now."
Maki bit her tongue. "Alright. Why… why are you three living together? Did Eli and you elope?"
Nozomi giggled at the last question. "Well, has it not been mentioned? Elicchi and I are under Nicocchi's protection, and Nicocchi gets to be popular, or notorious. It is mutually beneficial."
"Oh." Maki mumbled, and wondered in what way was her addition benefitting the rest of them.
"I won't say that Elicchi and I eloped, but yes, I left my kingdom for her. My kingdom should be doing fine, I have a feeling it is."
"What about Eli's?"
Nozomi's eyes moved towards her half-eaten bread roll. "It is no more. I suggest you never bring up this matter in front of Elicchi or Nicocchi."
Maki's silence prompted Nozomi to break it.
"But eloping does sound romantic. I would say our current status could be referred to as such."
Nozomi's playful tone was back, and Maki took it as a signal that the serious conversation was over. It was fine. She had gotten enough answers for now.
What she could not fully comprehend was how Nozomi was not broken yet. Most soldiers she had seen, especially old veterans like her father's mentor were all exhausted, and like Nozomi, they had a sense of resignation, yet Nozomi continued on. Some old soldiers had told stories of their comrades dying in battle, and those close to them died soon after, out of battle. Their hearts and minds were unable to take the stress and guilt.
And although death did not take the rest, it haunted them.
For Nozomi, whom death had taken so many times, shouldn't it be more tiring? How strong was her heart, how determined was she? How did she manage to willingly throw herself at death despite knowing how painful its embrace was?
She took one last look at the girl still seated at the table, and wondered if her shoulders really were able to bear that much weight.
She clenched her fists.
"I'm going to take that weight off your shoulders, Nozomi. I swear."
Nozomi blinked.
The slight smile decorated with two rivulets she presented to Maki nearly made the younger girl weep as well.
"Thank you, Maki-chan."
AN: Haha has it been eight months? oops. Work has swamped me so much that I have apparently lost track of time. I love the AKP au too much to drop it. I wish I could turn back time too. I will definitely finish it. Please be patient until then orz
Also, some of my friends have pointed out that AKP has similarities to Re:Zero and Saike mata shitemo but my inspiration for Nozomi was PMMM, and also UQ holder.
